January
Gegege No Kitarou [ゲゲゲの鬼太郎] ("Cackling Kitarou") (tv), Toei.
(drawn animation)
The first of several Gegege No Kitarou television series. There have also been ten theatrical movies.

Osamu Tezuka forms Tezuka Productions to produce manga (comic books). Later the company began to produce animated films.
February
He's Your Dog, Charlie Brown (tvsp), Bill Melendez /Melendez.
(drawn animation)

Hamilton Luske (Ham Luske, Hamilton S. Luske) (October 13, 1903-February 13, 1968) (director, animator) dies in Bel Air, California.
February
Cirkeline (tv), Jannik Hastrup /Dansk Tegnefilm. (Denmark)
(drawn animation)
(1968-1971)

The Herbs (tvss), Ivor Wood /Filmfair. (Great Britain)
(puppet animation)

 February
Wanpaku Tanteidan [わんぱく探偵団] ("Naughty Detective Club") (tv), Mushi.
(drawn animation)



March
Andersen Monogatari Match Uri no Shojo ("The Tales of Andersen: The Little Match-Seller") (f), Kimio Yabuki /Toei.
(drawn animation)

Kyojin no Hoshi [巨人の星] ("Star of the Giants") (tv), TMS.
(drawn animation)
(1968-1971)

Takeshi Honda (Honda Takeshi) (animator, character designer) born in Ishikawa.


April
Les Shadoks (tv), ORTF. (France)
(drawn animation)

 April
Akane-chan [あかねちゃん] ("Little Akane") (tv), Toei.
(drawn animation)

Animal 1 [アニマル1] (tv), Mushi.
(drawn animation)

Cyborg 009 [サイボーグ009] (tv), Toei.
(drawn animation)

Fight Da!! Pyuta [ファイトだ!! ピュー] ("Fight On!! Pyuta") (tv), Hoso Doga Seisaku.
(drawn animation)

Kaibutsu-kun [怪物くん] ("Little Kaibutsu") (tv)/(tvss), Zero Studio and TMS.
(drawn animation)



May
Yuriko Fuchizaki (Fuchizaki Yuriko) (voice actress) born in Tokyo.

Hikaru Midorikawa (Midorikawa Hikaru) (voice actress) born in Tochigi.


July
Yellow Submarine (f), George Dunning /T.V.C. London. (Great Britain)
(drawn animation)

 July
Taiyo no Oji: Horus no Daiboken ("Prince of the Sun: The Great Adventure of Horus") (f), Isao Takahata /Toei.
(drawn animation)
September
The Adventures of Gulliver (tv), Hanna-Barbera.
(drawn animation)

The Archie Show (tv), Filmation.
(drawn animation)
first of a number of tv series based on the popular comic strip

The Banana Splits Adventure Hour (tv), Hanna-Barbera.
(drawn animation)
combination of live action and new and old animated short series
new animated series were: The Three Musketeers (tvss), The Arabian Knights (tvss), and The Micro Venture (tvss).

Go Go Gophers (tv)/(tvss), Leonardo Productions (Gamma (Mexico)).
(drawn animation)
contained reruns of cartoons previously shown on earlier Leonardo/Total Television programs

The New Adventures of Huck Finn (tv), Hanna-Barbera.
(drawn animation)

The Wacky Races (tv), Hanna-Barbera.
(drawn animation)

John DiMaggio (voice actor) born.

September
Sasuke [サスケ] (tv), Tele-Cartoon Japan.
(drawn animation)
October
Babar, The Little Elephant (tvsp), Bill Melendez /Melendez.
(drawn animation)

The Fabulous Shorts (tvsp), Walt DeFaria and Sheldon Fay, Jr. /Lee Mendelsohn Productions
documentary history of cartoons, featuring clips from many Academy Award winners

Bea Benaderet (voice actress) dies in Los Angeles, California.
October
Vip, mio fratello superuomo ("Vip, My Brother the Superman") (f), Bruno Bozzetto /Bozetto. (Italy)
(drawn animation)

 October
Dokachin [ドカチン] (tv)/(tvss), Tatsunoko.
(drawn animation)

Sabu to Ichi Torimonhikae [佐武と市捕物控] ("Sabu and Ichi's Investigations") (tv), Mushi, Toei, and Studio Zero.
(drawn animation)

Vampire [バンパイヤ] (tv), Mushi.
(live action; some drawn animation)

Yokai Ningen Bem [妖怪人間ベム] ("Bem the Demon-man") (tv), Daichi.
(drawn animation)

Yuyake Bancho [夕やけ番長] ("The Ringleader of the Sunset") (tvss), Tokyo TV Doga.
(drawn animation)
November
The Mouse on the Mayflower (tvsp), Arthur Rankin, Jr. and Jules Bass /Rankin-Bass.
(drawn animation)

November
Rica Matsumoto (Matsumoto Rica 松本利香) (November 30, 1968- ) (voice actress, singer) born in Yokohama, Kanagawa.
December
Hawks and Doves (ss), Hawley Pratt /DePatie-Freleng.
(drawn animation)
first Rolland and Ratfink series (1968-1971)

The Little Drummer Boy (tvsp), Arthur Rankin, Jr. and Jules Bass/Rankin-Bass.
(puppet animation)

Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day (ss), Wolfgang Reitherman /Disney.
(drawn animation)
Academy Award: Best Short Subjects, Cartoons

Brendan Fraser (voice actor) born in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Bill Tytla (Vladimir Peter Tytla) (October 25, 1904-December 30-1968) (animator, director) dies in Flanders, Connecticut.
December
Astérix et Cléopâtre ("Asterix and Cleopatra") (f), Rene Goscinny, Lee Payant, and Albert Uderzo /Belvision. (Belgium)
(drawn animation)

no date
The Magic Pear Tree (ss), Jimmy T. Murakami /Murakami-Wolf.
(drawn animation)

Terrytoons studio closes.

 no date
Walking (ss), Ryan Larkin /NFB. (Canada)
(drawn animation)

Gerald Potterton, Peter Sander, and Murray Shostack found Potterton Productions. (Canada)

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation opens an animation studio under Hubert Tison.

 no date
Aglaé et Sidonie (tvss). (France)
(puppet animation)
(1968-1975)

Les corbeaux ("The Crows") (ss), Gisèle and Ernest Ansorge /Nag Films. (Switzerland)
(sand animation)

Film, Film, Film! [Фильм, Фильм, Фильм] (ss), Fyodor Khitruk /Soyuzmultifilm. (Soviet Union [Russia])
(drawn animation)

"I Explain" (tv), Pannoniafilm. (Hungary)
(drawn animation)

I Huvet Pa En Gammel Gubbe ("Out of an Old Man's Head") (f), Per Ahlin /GK-Film. (Sweden)
(drawn animation, some live action)

Klubok [Клубок] ("Ball of Yarn") (ss), Nikolai Serebryakov /Soyuzmultifilm. (Soviet Union [Russia])
(puppet animation)

A Mézga család különös kalandjai ("The Mezga Family") (tv), Joseph Nepp /Pannoniafilm. (Hungary)
(drawn animation)

Mi Katil Meghr ("A Drop of Honey") (ss), Valentin Podpomogov /Hayfilm. (Soviet Union [Armenia])
(silhouette animation)

Aventuras de Molecula ("Adventures of Molecula") (tvss), Delgado. (Spain)
(drawn animation)

Musti (tvss), Belvision. (Belgium)
(drawn animation)

Putiferio va Alla Guerra ("Putiferio Goes to War"; "Perils of Problemina") (f), Roberto Gavioli /Gamma. (Italy)
(drawn animation)

Romeo si Julieta ("Romeo and Juliet") (ss), Bob Calinescu /Studioul Animafilm. (Romania)
(animated stones)

Stefano Lonati and Italo Bettiol found the Belokapi studio. (France)

 no date
"The Mighty Taro" (f), Myoji Ieki /Kyoda Eiga.
(puppet animation)

 no date
Nhung Chiec Ao Am ("The Winter Coats") (ss), Ngo Manh Lan /Vietnamese Animated Cartoon and Puppet. (North Viet Nam)
(puppet animation)

Yoram Gross establishes his studio in Australia. (Australia>

Note: Unfortunately I lack the time or resources to help people find copies of animated films and television programs. I have put together a web List of Online Video and Book Stores that will be useful to find copies in the United States. There are other similar stores on the Internet around the world that might be able to supply the DVDs, LDs, or video tapes that are desired. Check my Animation on the World Wide Web pages for links to animation studios and other Internet resources that may have further information. I am not involved in trading materials from my own collection. I am still waiting to see most of the programs in this Chronology and would be happy to find sources for many of them.

Because of these circumstances I will not respond to requests for help to find these types of materials.
Continue to 1969 Last update: June 21, 2008
Comments to: Richard Llewellyn
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